Keystone XL, Global Warming, And Symbolic Gestures

Today the Obama administration officially rejected the Keystone XL Pipeline. As President Obama acknowledged, this decision was mostly symbolic. The existence of the pipeline itself would have made little difference in the battle against climate change, nor would its economic payoffs have been all that great. Obama said rejecting the Pipeline would strengthen his hand in upcoming international talks on climate change, making the US more credible in the fight.
In other words, the administration’s decision was about PR: “see, we’re serious!” But the people that need to come on board – the people who are skeptical either about the seriousness of global warming or about the efficacy of government actions to combat global warming – can see through all this condescension. Condescension feeds the skepticism. And those who already believe don’t need symbolic gestures. I basically agree with the Washington Post editorial A disappointing but long-awaited decision on the Keystone XL pipeline . Check it out.